Marlon went to school the next day even though his best friend was missing.
Since almost everyone at school heard about the drowning they stared and asked him
questions. He was a big tough guy that could handle it. Anyone else might have gone
bonkers.

A group of friends walked up to Marlon, surrounding him.

"Hey Marlon, have they found Isaac yet?" One asked.

"No." Marlon simply answered.

"I heard he killed himself because of his girlfriend Cassandra." Another piped.

"Yeah, that twit Cassandra." A girl grumbled.

"I heard she was a total B."

"No, he just had a little too much to drink." Marlon interjected.

"I still think its that sluts fault."

The echoes of their conversation resounded in his mind as he slowly stepped
away without them noticing. He knew it would soon get all over the school that
Cassandra was the big B who sent Isaac over the edge.

*****

The day was cold and gloomy fitting just right with Cassandra’s moon. She felt
as if she literally killed Isaac, shoved a stake threw his heart and murdered him.

“Helen, can we go to the lake now?” Cassandra asked.

“Cassandra sweetie, I think its better if we stay here.” Helen responded.

“But I want to be there. What if they find him?” Cassandra whimpered.

“They will call us if they find him, honey.” Helen assured.

Cassandra shook her head furrowing her eyebrows. “I want to see him. I want to
say good bye to him and tell him I’m sorry, sorry for everything I’ve put him through. If
it wasn’t for me, for even meeting me, he would be alive and happy with someone else.”
Cassandra blurted.

“It wasn’t you fault Cassandra, and you will be able to see him. I’ll make them
let you see Isaac, I promise.” Helen insisted. “But lets stay here and wait it out. Its not
as hectic and you won’t be bugged by those reporters.”

“Fine.” Cassandra stomped her way out of the living room and into her room
slamming her door closed.

“This has to be a dream.” She thought. “A nightmare.” She stumbled to her bed
falling onto her stomach and burring her face into her pillow. “Why, why, why?” She
questioned herself. She was all alone now. She was missing everything; her mother,
father, Isaac, she had even fallen away from her friends. What was she going to do?

Maybe if she called Lindsay she would tell her everything was okay. She always
made her feel better.

Cassandra sat up and whiped at her eyes. Crying had become so common over
the last three weeks. She had forgotten what it felt like to be happy. After her tears
stopped she stood and took a deep breath. She walked out of her room and to the phone
in the living room. She dialed Lindsay’s number and waited for an answer.

“Hello?” Lindsay’s mother answered.

“Hi, is Lindsay home?” Cassandra asked.

“Yeah, hold on. I’ll go get her.”

“Okay.”

“Hey.” Lindsay picked up the phone.

“Hi, Lindsay.”

“Cassandra is that you?”

“Yeah.”

“How are you doing? I’ve been so worried about you.”

“I just had to call you, I’m so upset.”

“Yeah, I heard. Its all over school.”

“Its is?”

“I know its not your fault and I know you blame yourself but don’t. Don’t listen
to what other people are saying.”

“What are they saying?”

“They’re accusing you of Isaac’s death. They’re saying you were being a big B to
him and this and that. They’re all a bunch of jerks.”

“I’m sorry Lindsay but I have to go.” Cassandra sniffled. How dare everyone
make up rumors about her and such terrible ones at that.

“Wait Cassandra, where are you staying?” Lindsay asked as Cassandra hung up
the phone.

Cassandra headed back into her room closing the door behind her. She pulled the
window open, pushed out the screen and climbed out. Missing everything she knew and
lived for she headed to the only place she felt somewhat comfortable, her home.

*****

Cassandra walked into her house using the hidden key under the flower pot.
Going to the kitchen, hungry from not eating since Sunday she decided to rummage
threw the cupboards. Upon stepping onto the back and white titled floor she had noticed
someone had done their own scrounging around.

“Well that’s just great.” She stammered. “Why doesn’t everyone just make
themselves at home and eat anything they want.” She spoke sarcastically. “Stupid
real-estate people.” She had noticed a for sale sign out in her front ysrd when she walked
up. She assumed it was them.

Cassandra walked to the counter and picked up the empty soup can throwing it
away. She had all of a sudden lost her appetite.

Missing her father she walked up the stairs and into Dales room. She walked to
his neatly made bed and tugged off the robe that was draped over the cedar chest at the
end of his bed. Dale had worn it every night before he went to sleep. She wrapped it
around herself and twirled around in circles. She pulled the collar up to her nose
smelling in his cologne.

She laid down in his bed surrounding herself in his smell. She stayed there for a
few minutes just remembering him until something came over her. She got up and
headed to Dales medicine cabinet. She opened it up and peered at all the prescription
drugs. She became dizzy as she thought about them, falling slightly back onto the shower
door. She grabbed the hanging towel for support noticing it was wet.

“Oh yeah and use my shower whenever you feel it necessary.”

Cassandra stepped back up to the medicine cabinet and took a few pill bottles in
her hand. She read each label looking for the Valium, she knew her father had them.
After finding the right bottle she unscrewed the cap and poured the pills into her sweaty
hand. She gawked at them swallowing hard.

“Life is over as I know it.” She spoke to them. “You’re the only ones that can
help me now.”

She filled a dixie cup up with water and shoved the pills into her mouth. She
gagged a few times before they finally went down with a sip of water.

*****

Isaac lay on Cassandra bed. He had head phones on attached to Cassandra’s
stereo. He stared up at the stars on the ceiling mouthing the words to the song and
bobbing his head to the beat.

When an eighties song came on he pulled the head phones away from his ears
quickly. He hated the eighties. When he stood to change the channel on the stereo he
decided he was bored. He went downstairs to find something to entertain himself with.
He skipped down the stairs and fiddled around until he decided to go check out Dales
computer. Maybe he had some games on there that he could entertain himself with. He
booted up the computer and waited for the main screen. He noticed that someone must
have shut it down wrong when they last used it because it was running through a memory
test making sure all of the files weren’t corrupt. Once that was done the Microsoft word
processor popped up and the computer sounded, insuring it was on.

Isaac clicked off the word processor without reading it and checked the start
bottom for any sort of game. He didn’t have his own computer at home but learned how
to use them at school. He searched the computer finding only a game of Solitaire. He
clicked it and began to play.

*****

Cassandra stood in front of the vanity. She looked at herself in the mirror. To her
it seemed as thought she had grown so old in the last few weeks. Deep set eyes with bags
had taken over and her skin seemed to be more blemished than before.

Cassandra felt tired, she leaned her hands on the vanity trying to hold herself up.
Maybe this was the pills taking effect. She became dizzy and started to fall.